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' 


STORIES    FOR  CORINNE 


A  BOOK  FOPw 


ALL   LITTLE   GIRLS   AND   BOYS. 


EDITED  BY  MRS.  COLMAN. 


BOSTON: 
PUBLISHED    BY    S.    COLMAN, 

NO.      30      CORSHILL. 


Stereotyped  and  Printed 

By  Samuel  N.  Dickinson  &  Company, 

52  "Washington  St Boston. 


CONTENTS 


TAOE 

INNOCENCE, 7 

THE  FATRT  OF  THE   ROSE, 11 

THE  LAMMIE, 15 

LILLA'S  DREAM,  ••.....: 47 

THE  CHILD'S  DREAM  AMONG  FLOWERS, 04 

CHILDHOOD, 71 

THE  KING  OF  THE  SWANS, • 76 

CORINNE, 91 


INNOCENCE 


BY   RUFUS    DAWES. 


N  infant  child  had  passed  away, 

Where  angels  live  and  love, — 
His  heavenly  Father  wanted  him, 
•  And  took  him  home  above; 
And  happy  was  the  child  to  find 

A  garden  full  of  bowers, 
Where  many  other  children  too, 
Were  playing  with  the  flowers. 


INNOCENCE. 

II 

The  lambs  were  skipping  on  the  green, 

The  trees  were  full  of  birds, 
And  fruit  hung  down  deliciously, 

Above  the  grazing  herds; 
While  music  from  a  thousand  throats 

Came  warbling  through  the  air, 
And  fragrance  such  as  angels  love, 

Blew  from  the  flowrets  fair. 

in 

Oh!  what  a  lovely  sight  was  that 

The  little  cherub  saw, 
And  how  it  longed  to  frolic  too, 

And  wear  the  dress  they  wore; 


INNOCENCE.  9 

For  wreaths  of  flowers,  like  dazzling  gold, 

And  silver  shining  white, 
Hung  o'er  their  breasts  and  on  their  arms, 

So  beautiful  and  bright. 


IV. 

Just  then  an  angel,  fair  to  see, 

And  shining  like  the  sun, 
Came  smiling  with  a  mother's  smile, 

And  blessed  the  little  one; 
"While  in  her  arms  she  took  the  child, 

And  kissed  it  o'er  and  o'er, 
And  bade  it  play  among  the  rest, 

In  joy  for  evermore. 


10  INNOCENCE. 


Away  it  ran  with  mirthful  glee, 

To  join  the  little  band, 
That  round  about  soon  gathered  fast, 

And  clasped  their  brother's  hand ; 
Then  crowning  him  with  pretty  flowers. 

They  laughed  with  joy  intense, 
Because  their  hearts  had  felt  no  sin, 

And  all  was  Innocence. 


THE  FAIRY  OF  THE  ROSE. 

BY  RUFUS   DAWES. 

obinne  was  a  beautiful  little  girl,  who 
always  obeyed  her  parents,  and  who 
loved  her  brothers  and  sisters.  She  liked 
to  walk  about  in  the  country,  and  to  gather 
pretty  flowers  that  grew  in  the  fields,  and 
sometimes  she  would  stay  out  so  late  before 
the  sun  set,  that  the  cows  would  go  home 
before  she  did,  and  Letty,  the  housemaid, 
would  be  waiting  for  her  with  her  silver 
porringer  and  supper. 

One  afternoon  she  was  looking  at  the 
lovely  clouds  that  were  moving  along  under 


12  THE   FAIRY  OF   THE   ROSE. 

the  blue  sky,  and  one  of  them  poured  down 
a  gentle  mist,  which  made  a  brilliant  rain- 
bow. Corinne  had  often  seen  rainbows  from 
the  parlor  window,  but  now  she  saw  one  out 
in  the  open  fields,  and  it  seemed  to  her  that 
it  was  close  by,  and  was  bending  over  a 
rose-bush. 

"  If  I  could  only  catch  that  beautiful 
rainbow !  "  said  Corinne,  and  away  she  ran, 
with  her  bright  curling  hair  streaming  to 
the  breeze,  and  her  blue  eyes  shining  like 
violets  in  the  dew. 

But  Corinne  soon  found  that  the  rainbow 
fled  as  fast  as  she  pursued  it ;  but  as  she 
passed  by  the  rose-bush,  she  saw  a  young 
and  handsome  female,  who  seemed  to  be 
hiding  among  the  roses,  and  was  now  look- 
ing out  upon  the  child. 


THE   FAIRY  OF   THE   ROSE.  13 

"  My  pretty  little  Corinne,"  said  the  fe- 
male, "  do  n't  run  any  more  after  the  rain- 
bow—  you  will  never  be  able  to  overtake 
it.  But  stop  a  moment  here  by  the  roses. 
I  am  the  Fairy  of  the  Rose,  and  I  love  to 
make  good  little  children  happy.  You  may 
come  here  every  day  while  the  roses  bloom, 
and  carry  one  home  with  you  in  the  evening. 
Take  this,"  said  she,  offering  a  beautiful 
bud  to  Corinne  ;  "  it  is  the  emblem  of  inno- 
cence. Take  it,  sweet  little  Corinne,  and 
remember  the  Fairy  of  the  Rose.  Be  a 
good  child,  and  you  will  be  more  beautiful 
than  the  flowers,  and  more  delightful  than 
the  rainbows  which  you  love." 

Corinne  thanked  the  fairy  for  the  present, 
and  away  she  scampered  to  her  mother. 
And  after  that,  she  used  to  visit  the  rose- 


14      THE  FAIRY  OF  THE  ROSE. 

bush  every  day,  and  while  she  played  with 
the  butterflies  and  the  humming-birds,  the 
Fairy  of  the  Rose  used  to  sing  to  her  the 
sweetest  songs,  and  sometimes  she  would 
fall  asleep  and  dream  such  beautiful  dreams, 
that  it  would  have  made  her  mother's  heart 
beat  with  delight  to  see  the  angelic  smile 
on  her  lips. 

In  this  way  Corinne  grew  in  favor  with 
all,  for  she  always  minded  her  lessons,  and 
obeyed  her  parents,  and  ever  remembered 
with  affection  the  Fairy  of  the  Rose. 


THE  LAMMIE. 

A    MODERN    FAIRY    TALE. 
BY   MISS   A.    A.    GRAY. 

Eosa  went  to  bed  weeping.  It  was  a 
rainy  night,  and  while  the  rain-drops 
pelted  the  window  frames,  Rosa's 
tears  fell  upon  her  pillow.  She  had  been 
a  disobedient  girl,  and  her  mother  had  re- 
proved her  more  severely  than  usual,  and 
so  Rosa  wept,  not  in  penitence  because  she 
had  done  wrong,  but  in  displeasure  and 
impatience  because  she  had  been  punished, 
and  she  said  to  herself,  "It  is  too  bad  ! 
Mother  is  cruel,  I  am  sure  she  is,  and  she 
does  not  love  me,  I  know  she  does  not." 


16  THE   LAMMIE. 

Pitiable  feelings  and  thoughts  were  these  to 
go  to  sleep  upon  —  bad  stuff  for  dreams 
to  be  woven  of ;  but  Kosa  did  fall  asleep 
while  her  breast  was  thus  disquieted.  She 
dreamed,  and  in  her  dream  she  stood  by 
the  border  of  a  pond.  She  bent  over,  and 
looked  into  the  water ;  but  the  water  re- 
proved her,  by  showing  her  the  distorted 
features  of  a  weeping  girl.  She  started 
back,  and  in  anger  threw  a  stone  into  the 
face  of  the  reprover,  for  presuming  to  speak 
so  plainly  to  her.  "  There,"  said  she,  "  you 
cannot  show  me  such  a  picture  of  myself 
now,  if  you  would ;  I  have  wrinkled  your 
own  face  well,  for  giving  me  such  a  portrait 
of  mine."  The  honest  reprover  only  smiled ; 
and  while  Rosa  was  watching  the  dimples 
which  she   chose  to  call  "  wrinkles,"   she 


THE   LAMMIE.  17 

heard,  behind  her,  a  sound  as  of  rustling 
leaves,  or  of  rain-drops  pattering  on  the 
leaves.  Was  it  the  rain  beating  on  the 
window,  or  the  curtain  fluttering,  —  was  it 
the  grasshoppers  leaping  about  over  the 
blackberry  bushes  ?  "  Rosa,"  whispered  a 
voice  close  behind  her,  which  sounded  as 
soft  as  the  crunching  of  a  crust  of  bread. 
Rosa  turned  her  head  around,  and  oh !  there 
were  the  black  elves,  close  beside  her ;  those 
elves  that  dwell  (if  I  saj  truly)  in  the  hollow 
of  the  earth.  Spider-like  little  creatures 
they  were,  very  black,  and  with  long  slender 
limbs,  which  they  threw  about  in  a  most 
fantastic  manner,  and  with  large  owlish  eyes, 
which  they  seemed  to  think  were  made 
on  purpose  to  be  rolled  from  side  to  side. 
"  Rosa,"  said  one  of  the  elves,  which  seemed 
2 


18  THE   LAMMIE. 

to  be  the  king,  "  do  not  believe  what  that 
pond  sajs ;  I  know  his  tricks.  He  always 
was  given  to  telling  falsehoods ;  believe  me, 
he  is  a  wrinkled  sinner.  You  are  a  good 
child,  and  your  face  is  a  pretty  one.  Come, 
we  love  you ;  come  with  us ;  we  have  a  fine 
home."  And  he  reached  out  his  claw-hand, 
and  took  hold  of  Rosa's  hand,  and  it  felt  to 
Rosa  as  if  she  had  clasped  a  branch  of  a 
rough-barked  shrub.  And  with  the  spider- 
like troop  she  swept  along,  over  hills,  plains, 
rivers,  and  seas ;  and  then  they  all  dashed 
headlong  down  into  a  deep  dell,  at  the  bot- 
tom of  which  was  a  bed  of  dry  leaves.  The 
elf-king  scratched  the  leaves  away  with  his 
claw-feet,  throwing  them  up  till  the  air  was 
full.  When  he  had  scratched  them  away, 
a  hole  was  discovered  in  the  earth,  not  much 


THE    LAMMIE.  19" 

larger  than  a  squirrel's  hole.  "  There," 
said  the  elf,  "  is  our  stair-way ;  go  down, 
Rosa ;  here  we  will  feast  you  well,  and  give 
you  a  mirror,  which  shall  tell  you  the  truth." 
And  he  went  down,  the  spiral  staircase,  draw- 
ing Rosa  after  him,  and  the  whole  troop 
followed,  with  a  sound  like  an  army  of  cock- 
roaches, making  a  more  hasty  than  dignified 
retreat  from  the  store-room.  ■  Down,  down, 
down  they  wound  and  wound  till  it  seemed 
to  Rosa  they  must  be  near  the  other  side 
of  the  earth  —  millions  of  miles  —  many 
days,  it  seemed.  Oh,  that  wearying  stair- 
case !  Yet  they  went  swiftly,  for  it  is  easy 
to  go  down  stairs,  every  one  knows.  Be- 
fore they  had  reached  the  bottom,  Rosa's 
brain  was  in  such  a  whirl  that  she  was 
scarcely  conscious  of  anything.     Suddenly 


20  THE   LAMMIE. 

she  felt  an  electric  shock,  which  seemed  to 
bring  her  to  consciousness.  It  was  the  floor 
of  the  great  elfin  hall  which  her  feet  had 
touched.  And  now  she  was  whirled  around 
in  a  dance  with  the  band  of  elves,  and  it 
seemed  as  if  she  could  not  help  dancing  on 
the  electric  floor.  In  the  midst  of  the  hall 
burned  a  smoky  fire,  and  over  the  fire  a 
caldron  hung  from  the  ceiling,  and  the 
smoke  from  the  fire,  and  the  steam  from  the 
caldron  hung  in  heavy  clouds  around. 

"  Supper  is  not  ready  yet,"  said  the  elf- 
king,  who  still  held  Rosa's  hand  clasped  in 
one  of  his  claws,  while  he  ran  the  other  up 
through  his  hair,  which  was  as  sleek  and 
soft  as  the  down  of  a  porcupine.  "  We 
shall  have  time  for  a  little  conversation  be- 
fore  supper.     Now  tell  me  your  offence. 


THE   LAJiMIE.  21 

I  heard  your  mother's  voice  scolding  you ; 
but  I  do  not  know  what  it  was  for." 

"  I  went  away  secretly,"  said  Rosa,  "  to 
see  one  of  my  schoolmates,  when  my  mother 
had  forbidden  it,  and  when  she  punished 
me  I  was  angry,  and  I  am  now,  for  mother 
is  cruel  to  me." 

"  Never  mind  what  your  mother  says  to 
you,  my  dear,"  said  the  elf;  and  he  went 
on  and  gave  a  long  lecture,  which  thoroughly 
persuaded  Rosa  that  she  was  nothing  more 
or  less  than  an  innocent  and  injured  child. 
"  Come  now,  the  soup  is  ready,"  said  the 
elf.  And  all  the  elves  stood  round  the  cal- 
dron, each  with  his  ladle.  And  Rosa  had 
a  ladle  too,  and  she  feasted  with  the  elves. 

The  soup  tasted  good  ;  but  shortly  she 
began  to  feel  faint  and  sick,  and  so  dizzy 


22  THE   LAMMIE. 

that  she  could  not  stand ;  and  at  length 
went  into  convulsions,  of  which  she  was  all 
the  time  conscious ;  presently  it  seemed  as 
if  she  could  no  longer  use  her  limbs,  nor 
coidd  she  sit  up  nor  stand,  neither  lie  in 
any  way  except  upon  her  face,  and  at  last 
it  was  as  if  she  had  no  limbs ;  but  she  could 
move  her  body  very  easily,  and  it  seemed 
to  grow  longer  and  longer,  as  she  lay  upon 
the  floor,  and  she  loved  to  move  about, 
this  side  and  that ;  but  still  she  could  not 
stand  erect.  "  What  has  happened  to  me," 
thought  she,  and  she  asked  the  elf  king  to 
show  her  the  truth-telling  mirror.  ' i  Come ,' ' 
said  he  ;  and  she  followed  him,  moving  along 
on  the  smooth  floor  with  the  most  delightful 
ease. 

The  elf  led  her  to  a  basin  of  black  look- 


THE   LAMMIE. 


93 


ing  liquid ;  she  looked  into  it,  and  there,  in 
the  blackness,  she  beheld  herself  transformed 
into  —  oh  what?  a  white  and  woolly  lamb. 
"  Oh,"  said  she,  "  this  is  a  true  mirror  ; 
but  why  is  it  that  I  cannot  skip  and  play  ? 
It  is  quite  as  pleasant,  though,  to  glide 
about  on  this  smooth  floor."  After  some 
time,  she  had  become  so  much  accustomed 
to  believing  herself  a  lamb,  that  it  really 
began  to  be  as  if  she  ran  and  leaped  about, 
and  presently  she  seemed  to  be  running 
up  the  spiral  staircase,  and  when  she  had 
reached  the  top,  she  seemed  to  spring  along 
over  the  meadows,  thinking  to  herself,  Oh ! 
now  what  will  mother  say,  when  she  sees  I 
am  an  innocent  lamb  ?  Yes,  I  am  a  lamb  ! 
Oh,  the  truth-telling  mirror. 

"  The  truth-telling  mirror !  "  repeated  a 


24  THE   LAMMIE. 

soft,  sweet  voice  directly  in  front  of  Rosa. 
It  seemed  to  come  from  amongst  the  high 
clover  through  which  she  was  bounding,  as 
she  thought,  but  she  saw  nothing  but  the 
red  clover  blossoms  and  the  yellow  king- 
cups. Hist!  she  hears  the  gentle  waving 
of  wings,  like  the  wings  of  doves ;  and  from 
out  the  clover  arise  beautiful  little  fairy-like 
forms,  bright  as  humming-birds.  "  Rosa," 
said  one  of  them,  in  a  voice  like  the  iEolian 
harp,  "  Come,  I  will  show  you  the  truth- 
telling  mirror*  I  have  it  up  in  my  pavilion 
in  the  sky.  We  are  the  fairies  of  the  upper 
air ;  I  am  the  queen.  I  have,  resting  on 
the  clouds,  a  pavilion  made  of  pearl.  Oh ! 
it  is  light  up  there ;  you  cannot  look  around 
but  the  rainbow  meets  your  eye." 

"  I  have  looked  into  the-  true  mirror," 


THE   LAALMIE.  25 

said  Rosa,  "  and  it  showed  me  the  lamb 
which  thou  seest  I  am." 

"  My  eye  sees  thee  but  as  the  child  Rosa ; 
but  my  heart  knows  thy  heart  as  the  mirror 
would  show  it,  and  I  know  what  thou  art. 
Follow  me  ;  it  is  best  thou  shouldst  see 
thyself." 

"  Give  me  thy  hand,"  said  Rosa,  "  and 
lead  me  up." 

"  Nay,  I  cannot  give  thee  my  hand ;  I 
would  not  willingly  come  very  near  such  as 
thou ;  but  thou  shalt  be  led.  We  fairy 
band  will  collect,  and  unite  together,  and  a 
golden  cloud  shall  enwrap  us,  and  the  cloud 
shall  rise  up,  and  thou  shalt  follow  it  till  it 
reaches  the  pavilion." 

"  I  do  not  love  you ;  you  are  not  kind," 
said  Rosa;  "but  I  am  curious  to  look  into 
3 


26  THE   LAMMIE. 

your  mirror;  so  I  -will  follow.' '  And  Rosa 
saw  the  cloud  arise  like  a  globe  of  gold,  and 
she  seemed  to  arise  with  it ;  and  in  circles 
up  they  swept,  higher !  higher !  till,  as  she 
saw  the  golden  ball  above-  and  the  green 
ball  of  earth  below,  the  latter  seemed  the 
smaller  globe  of  the  two. 

When  they  had  reached  the  pavilion,  the 
fairies  came  out  of  the  cloud  and  alighted 
upon  the  pearly  steps,  and  it  seemed  to 
Rosa  as  if  she  had  a  flock  of  doves  waving 
their  wings  around  and  above  her. 

The  queen  led  her  into  the  pavilion,  where 
she  saw  a  table  on  which  a  splendid  feast 
was  spread.  "  I  do  not  wish  to  eat  with 
you,"  said  Rosa ;  "  I  only  wish  to  see  if 
your  mirror  speaks  the  truth." 

"Thou  canst  not  eat  with  us,"  said  the 


THE   LAMMIE.  27 

queen ;  "we  ask  not  such  as  thou  to  our 
table.  Come,  pitiable  child !  and  behold 
thyself.  My  mirror  shows  not  the  outside, 
but  the  inside  ;  "  and  the  queen  led  Rosa 
to  a  crystal  basin,  wreathed  with  flowers  of 
many  hues,  and  sending  forth  the  sweetest 
odors.  The  dome-roof  of  the  pavilion  was 
lined  with  sapphires,  and  this  was  reflected 
in  the  clear  water,  and  on  this  blue  ground 
Rosa  beheld  herself,  —  a  scaly  serpent  of  a 
dull  coppery  red.  It  recoiled  at  the  sight 
of  itself.  "  Oh,  you  are  cruel !  "  she  cried 
to  the  queen;  "  this  cannot  be  true ! "  But 
she  perceived  again  that  she  did  not  leap 
and  run,  nor  stand  erect,  but  moved  along 
with  an  undulatory  motion,  and  her  ear 
seemed  to  hear  the  scaly  folds  sweep  along 
as  she  moved.     She  hissed  in  anger  and 


28  THE   LAMMIE. 

writhed  in  agony,  because  she  dreaded  that 
her  mother  should  behold  her  in  that  form. 
"  Nay,  my  poor  child,"  said  the  queen, 
"this  is  yarn;  go  and  transform  thyself 
into  something  better."  And  it  seemed  to 
Rosa  that  she-  had  awakened  and  found  that 
she  was  lying  in  bed,  still  retaining  the 
serpent  form.  "  Oh  !  agony  !  mother  will 
come  into  the  chamber,  and  instead  of  her 
Rosa,  whom  I  know  she  means  to  forgive, 
she  will  find  a  scaly  serpent  coiled  up  in 
the  bed.  And  instead  of  the  kiss  she  would 
have  given  me,  she  will  give  a  shriek,  and 
run  frightened  away."  Then  Rosa  thought 
her  mother  came  in,  started  and  shrieked 
as  she  had  dreaded,  and  the  poor  child 
arose  as  erect  as  she  was  able,  and  protested 
she  was  not  what  she  appeared.     "  Mother ! 


THE   LAMMIE.  29 

mother !  "  she  cried,  u  I  am  not  a  serpent ! 
oh !  I  am  not,  believe  me,  mother !  Forgive 
me  !  kiss  me,  and  I  shall  be  your  Rosa 
again."  "  Kiss  a  serpent  ?  "  cried  her 
mother,  "  Heaven  have  mercy !  where  is 
my  child  ? "  And  then  her  mother  with 
clasped  hands  looked  upon  her  with  a  look 
that  pierced  her  heart,  and  she  sunk  down 
and  crept  beneath  the  bed-clothes.  Her 
mother  shrieked  —  but  no  —  it  was  the 
creaking  of  the  chamber  door.  Rosa 
awoke  —  her  mother  bent  over  her  and 
kissed  her  wet  cheek.  "  What  ails  thee, 
my  dear  child  ?  Why  dost  thou  weep  so  ?  " 
"  Mother  !  mother  !  I  am  not  a  serpent ! 
do  not  kill  me!"  "  My  dearest  child, 
what  have  you  been  dreaming  about?" 
said  her  mother  laughing;   and  Rosa  now 


30  THE   LAMMIE. 

laughed  in  delight  to  find  that  she  was  not 
a  serpent,  and  she  told  her  dream.  "  Re- 
pent, my  Rosa,  and  behave  well  to-day,  and 
perhaps  you  will  dream  a  pleasanter  dream, 
to-night.  Was  it  not  the  serpent  within 
you  which  induced  you  cunningly  to  deceive 
me  and  to  disobey'  me,  for  the  sake  of 
gratifying  your  own  selfish  wishes  ?  Take 
care  that  he  does  not  creep  in  again.  Now 
dress  yourself,  and  after  breakfast  I  shall 
have  some  work  for  you  to  do,  and  if  you 
do  your  task  well,  and  are  obedient  and 
sweet-tempered  all  through  the  day,  then  I 
shall  believe  the  serpent  has  crept  away 
and  a  pretty  lamb  is  born  in  you."  Rosa 
felt  very  light-hearted  when  she  laid  down 
to  rest  the  next  night,  for  she  had  done 
so  well  during  the   day  that  her  mother 


THE   LAMMIE.  31 

had  hardly  been  obliged  to  reprove  her  for 
anything,  which  was  remarkable,  for  Rosa 
was  rather  a  wilful  child.     "  What  a  good 

girl  I  have "  but  before  the  sentence 

was  completed,  Rosa  was  in  a  dream.  It 
was  not  rainy  that  night,  nor  were  the  win- 
dow curtains  fluttering ;  but  Rosa  heard 
the  rustling  and  pattering  behind  her  as 
she  stood  by  the  pond,  curling  her  ring- 
lets around  her  fingers,  and  thinking  how 
prettily  she  looked,  "  Rosa !  Rosa !  "  said 
many  cracked  voices,  "  come  and  ride  the 
peacock.  Our  peacock  steeds  will  carry 
us  up  to  the  clouds,  so  that  we  can  see  the 
pavilion  of  the  air-fairies.  Come,  we  are  all 
going  up."  And  the  elf-king  touched  with 
his  wand  some  flowers  that  grew  on  the 
banks  of  the  pond,  and  instantly  they  were 


32  THE   LAMMIE. 

changed  into  peacocks.  Each  of  the  elves 
leaped  upon  the  back  of  one,  and  the  king 
placed  Rosa  before  him  on  his.  This  was 
certainly  fine  ;  the  peacocks  spread  their 
tails  so  wide  and  looked  so  proud,  and  held 
their  pretty  crowned  heads  so  high;  and 
though  the  elf  king's  claw  grasped  Rosa's 
waist  rather  tightly,  and  his  voice  grated 
harshly  upon  her  ear,  when  he  now  and 
then  cried,  "  high !  high,  boy ! "  to  his 
steed,  she  did  not  much  care  for  it,  it  was 
so  fine  to  be  sweeping  through  the  air  on 
the  beautiful  bird. 

But  look!  look!  what  is  coming?  An 
army  of  eagles  ;  and  hark  what  flapping  of 
wings !  From  the  clouds  the  troop  seems 
to  come ;  the  long  quilled  feathers  of  their 
far-spread  wings  glance  like  golden  arrows 


THE   LAMMTK.  33 

in  the  sun;  on  the  back  of  each  bird  is 
mounted  one  of  the  beautiful  fairies  of  the 
upper  air.  The  peacocks  shut  their  tails 
and  screamed  in  affright,  and  the  golden 
eagles  shrieked  in  defiance. 

' c Hence  to  your  own  dark  domain!" 
cried  the  queen  to  the  elfin  band,  as  her 
royal  bird  pounced  upon  the  king's,  pea- 
cock, while  all  the  other  eagle-mounted 
fairies  were  giving  a  downward  chase  to 
the  elves.  "  Quarter  !  quarter  !  "  cried 
the  king  in  a  voice  which  reminded  one  of 
a  pair  of  tongs  endeavoring  to  bring  harp 
tones  out  of  a  gridiron.  The  eagle  had 
grasped  the  peacock's  head  in  his  talons, 
and  the  poor  bird  struggled  painfully.  The 
king  was  hurled  into  the  air,  and  followed 
his  crown  as  it  fell  towards  the  earth,  looking 


C 


34  THE    LAMMIE. 

like  a  spider  grasping  at  her  ball  of  eggs. 
Rosa,  too,  slid  from  the  smooth  back  of  her 
steed ;  but  she  was  caught  by  the  queen 
and  placed  before  her  on  the  royal  bird. 

The  eagle  troop  wheeled  about,  and  ris- 
ing in  circles  higher  and  higher,  soon  hov- 
ered near  the  pavilion.  He  on  whose  back 
the  queen  and  Rosa  were  mounted,  alighted 
on  a  golden  ball  which  crowned  the  roof; 
here  he  stood  a  moment,  glancing  up  at  the 
sun,  first  with  one  eye,  then  with  the  other, 
and  turning  his  golden  neck  about  and 
quivering  his  great  wings ;  then  giving  one 
shout  of  grand  joy,  he  arose  and  wheeling 
about,  softly  descended  and  entered  the 
pavilion,  alighted  and  stood  still  while  the 
queen  dismounted  with  her  charge.  "  Now 
let  me  eat  with  you,  now  let  me  look  into 


: 


THE  LAMMIE.  35 

the  mirror  and  behold  myself,"  said  Kosa. 
"  The  table  is  spread,  thou  seest,"  said  the 
queen,  "  but  thou  canst  not  yet  partake 
with  us ;  but  thou  mayest  look  into  the  blue 
water,  and  see  all  thou  canst  see."  And 
she  led  Rosa  to  the  basin.  And  how 
Rosa's  heart  beat  as  she  looked  in  and 
beheld  herself  as  painted  on  the  blue,  in  the 
form  of  a  lamb,  white  and  woolly ;  but  oh  ! 
sad  deformity !  a  lamb  with  a  peacock's 
tail  spread  high  over  his  head ;  what  a 
monster  was  this.  "  Poor  me,"  thought 
Rosa,  "I  am  a  thing  fit  to  be  exhibited  in 
the  museum.  What  if  my  parents  should 
think  fit  to  exhibit  me  there,  just  for  a 
punishment,  and  then  after  I  am  dead,  set 
me  up  among  the  stuffed  animals.  But 
why  should   I   be  punished  ?   have  I  not 


36  THE   LAMMIE. 

repented  and  reformed  ?  and  why  does  this 
tail  adhere  to  me  ?  This  mirror  is  not 
quite  true,"  said  she  to  the  queen.  "  Thou 
hast  done  thy  tasks  well,"  said  the  queen, 
"  but  thou  hast  told  both  thyself  and  others 
of  it ;  yes,  thou  hast  boasted ;  thou  hast  not 
been  humble  in  thy  joy." 

Presently  it  seemed  to  Rosa  that  she  was 
in  the  museum,  where  a  great  concourse  of 
people  was  collected,  and  all  were  staring 
at  the  lamb  with  a  peacock's  tail  and  point- 
ing and  laughing.  And  then  she  was  in  a 
menagerie,  where  the  showman  was  com- 
pelling her  to  show  herself  off,  making  her 
spread  wide  the  wonderful  tail,  and  leap 
bars,  and  pace  round  with  a  monkey  on 
her  back,  and  do  many  other  silly  things. 
Poor  Rosa,  in  her  mortifications  she  almost 


THE    LAMMIE.  37 

wished  herself  a  serpent  again.  Then  she 
seemed  to  be  at  home  and  all  her  brothers 
and  sisters  laughed  at  the  peacock's  tail, 
and  one  of  her  brothers  pulled  some  of  the 
feathers  out,  and  shook  them  in  her  face ; 
but  this  she  was  glad  to  find  was  only  one 
of  her  sisters  who  had  come  to  awaken  her, 
and  was  shaking  a  handkerchief  in  her 
face.  "  Be  quiet,  Charles  !  "  cried  Rosa, 
as  she  opened  her  eyes,  "  you  are  unkind 
to  treat  me  so."  "  Is  sister  Ellen  unkind 
to  come  and  wake  you  to  go  to  walk  on  this 
beautiful  morning  ?  "  "Oh  dear !  dear  !  I 
thought  it  was  Charley  pulling  my  feathers 
out,  and  it  hurt  me."  "Your  feathers? 
why  my  silly  chicken  you  are  not  yet 
fledged ;  come,  downy  nestling,  up  and 
dress,  and  let  us  go  to  walk."     "I  am  a 


38  THE   LAMMIE. 

lamb,  only — — but  I  will  certainly  be  a 
lamb  to-day." 

The  next  night  Rosa  stood  in  her  dream 
by  the  pond  where  she  was  plucking  lilies, 
and  as  she  reached  over,  her  happy  face 
was  to  be  seen  in  the  water,  but  she  did 
not  see  it,  so  full  was  her  mind  of  the  fair 
lilies ;  while  she  was  smelling  of  one,  she 
heard  at  a  distance  behind  her  the  black 
troop,  and  the  king  called  in  a  voice  that 
sounded  like  the  creaking  of  a  cork  when 
being  drawn  from  the  bottle,  "  throw  down 
those  horrible  lilies ;  their  breath  is  death 
and  destruction ;  we  cannot  come,  we  dare 
not  approach  till  thou  hast  thrown  them 
away;  they  hate  us  from  the  bottom  of 
their  wicked  hearts." 

"  Dear  lilies !  "  said  Rosa,  "  then  I  will 


THE    LAMMIE.  39 

keep  you  as  a  safeguard,  for  you  love  me, 
I  know  you  do  •;  you  say  it  with  the  sweet- 
ness of  your  breath.  Yes,  you  love  me, 
and  I  love  you,  and  I  will  wear  you  in  my 
bosom."  She  placed  them  in  her  bosom, 
and  as  she  bent  her  head  to  smell  of  one, 
she  heard  a  very  small  voice,  like  the 
iEolian  harp-tones  of  the  fairy  queen ;  they 
were  so  very  faint,  she  thought  they  came 
from  a  distance.  She  looked  around  and 
above,  but  saw  no  fairies,  nor  elves  neither, 
for  the  black  troop,  seeing  her  cherish  the 
lilies,  had  vanished.  The  voice  sounded  a 
little  louder,  and  said,  "  Rosa,  dear  child ! 
love  us  and  we  will  love  you ;  do  well,  and 
we  will  always  be  with  you  to  guard  you ; 
feel,  think,  or  do  ill,  and  you  force  us  to 
leave  you."     "Ah!  is  it  the  lily  speaking ? 


40  THE    LAMMIE. 

the  voice  comes  from  amongst  the  yellow 
central  petals.  No,  it  is  the  queen.  She 
rises  up  from  her  beautiful  couch."  "  Wilt 
thou  go  with  me  to  the  pavilion ?"  said  she. 
"  Oh,  take  me  with  thee,"  said  Rosa,  "  and 
let  me  look  into  the  blue  mirror  once 
more."  The  queen  touched  the  lily  with 
her  wand,  and  it  was  an  ivory  car  of  light 
and  exquisite  workmanship,  and  its  cushions 
were  of  cloth  of  gold.  Three  pair  of  white 
doves  were  harnessed  to  it,  and  when  Rosa 
and  the  queen  were  seated  upon  the  golden 
cushions,  the  doves  spread  their  wings,  and 
as  they  beat  the  air,  making  a  soft  waving 
sound,  onwards  and  upwards  swiftly  sped 
the  beautiful  coach  and  six,  and  soon  amid 
the  dove-colored  clouds  peered  the  dome- 
roof   and    pearly   pillars   of   the   pavilion. 


THE   LAMMIE.  41 

Silently  the  car  rolled  along  through  the 
rounded  clouds,  and  when  it  reached  the 
steps  of  the  pavilion  the  six  gentle  steeds 
closed  their  wings,  and  uncurling  their  red 
feet,  stood  with  arched  necks  and  blinking 
eyes,  while  Rosa  and  the  queen  alighted. 
The  queen  then  touched  the  car  with  her 
wand,  and  again  the  lily  was  there.  It  lay 
at  her  feet,  and  she  picked  it  up  and  placed 
it  in  Rosa's  bosom.  They  entered  the  pa- 
vilion, where  the  feast  was  spread,  and 
where  the  fairy  train  awaited  the  arrival  of 
their  queen.  "  See,"  said  the  queen,  "  I 
have  brought  you  a  pretty  guest.  Eat 
with  us,''  said  she  to  Rosa,  "  and  then  thou 
shalt  go  to  the  mirror."  And  Rosa  sat 
down  and  ate  with  them,  and  then  with  a 
heart  full  of  doubts  and  fears,  yet  throbbing 
4 


42  THE   LAMMIE, 

with  joy  and  hope,  she  arose  and  went 
to  the  flower-wreathed  basin.  Oh,  happy 
child !  There  on  the  sapphire  ground  was 
the  pure  white  lamb  looking  her  in  the 
face,  and  no  longer  with  the  peacock's  tail, 
nor  with  any  sign  of  the  peacock  about  it ; 
but  wearing  about  its  neck  a  wreath  of 
beautiful  flowers.  The  innocent  lamb  in 
her  heart  now  bounded  with  joy.  "  Dear 
child,'  said  the  queen,  kissing  her  affection- 
ately, "  thou  bearest  the  lamb  in  thy  heart 
now,  because  thou  hast  not  only  done  thy 
tasks  well,  but  whenever  a  feeling  of  self- 
praise  endeavored  to  steal  in,  thou  didst 
strive  to  shut  the  door  of  thy  heart  against 
it,  and  didst  humbly  pray  to  be  delivered 
from  so  deadly  a  foe  to  thine  eternal 
peace." 


THE   LAMMIE.  43 

It  seemed  now  to  Rosa  that  she  was  in 
her  own  chamber,  still  wearing  the  form  of 
a  lamb,  and  she  thought  her  mother  came 
in,  and  seeing  a  pretty  lamb  wreathed  with 
flowers,  leaping  about  the  chamber,  smiled 
and  cried  out,  "  Oh,  pretty  creature!  where 
didst  thou  come  from  ?  "  And  Rosa  felt 
so  frolicsome  that  she  thought  she  would 
not  tell  who  the  lamb  was,  but  ran  up  to 
her  mother,  and  went  leaping  around  her, 
and  her  mother  caught  the  pretty  lamb  in 
her  arms,  and  warmly  caressed  it.  Then 
Rosa  laughed  to  think  how  she  was  going 
to  surprise  her  mother,  and  the  laugh 
awoke  her,  and  she  laughed  still  more  when 
she  found  she  was  really  in  her  mother's 
arms.  "  Ah,  what  is  so  funny,  my  love  ? 
have  sweet  spirits  been  with  you  in  your 
dream  ?     As  I  came  and  bent  over  you,  a 


44  THE   LAMMIE. 

pleasant  smile  was  on  your  lips,  and  when 
I  kissed  them,  you  laughed  in  your  sleep." 
"Oh,  mother,  I  am  a  lamb  !  a  happy  lamb, 
for  see  the  garland  around  my  neck ;  "  and 
she  put  her  hand  to  her  neck,  expecting  to 
feel  the  flowers.  "Ah,  no,  but  it  was  a 
sweet  dream  mother,  and  it  shall  be  a  true 
one,  for  I  will  be  a  lamb."  "  Yes,  my 
dearest,"  said  her  mother,  "  the  lamb  is  in 
your  heart,  I  know,  and  its  wreath  of 
flowers  shall  not  fade."  And  the  mother 
wept  joyful  tears  as  she  pressed  her  child 
closely  to.  her  bosom,  silently  asking  a  bless- 
ing on  her  head.  And  the  mother's  daily 
prayers,  and  the  child's  constant  endeavors 
to  do  well  were  not  in  vain,  for  Rosa  be- 
came such  a  delight,  such  a  blessing  to  all 
around  her,  that  she  gained  the  name  of 
"  Lammie." 


LILLYS  DREAM. 

eautiftjl  was  the  May  morning  that 
Lilla,  with  joyful  steps  and  innocent 
delight,  strolled  over  the  pastures  and 
through  the  woods.  She  ran  about  over 
the  moss-covered  rocks,  and  plucked  the 
gay  columbines  that  bent  at.  their  sides 
for  shelter.  She  walked  by  the  sparkling 
brook,  and  threw  herself  down  amongst  the 
violets  that  decked  its  borders,  and  her  ear 
was  delighted  with  the  joyous  gurgling  of 
its  waters,  and  with  the  cheerful  melody 
of  the  spring  birds,  and  the  drowsy  hum  of 
the  newly-awakened  insects.     She  returned 


48  lilla's  dream. 

home  with  her  basket  full  of  flowers,  and 
her  heart  and  mind  full  of  those  beautiful 
feelings  and  thoughts  which  good  angels 
delight  to  infuse  into  the  minds  of  little 
children ;  and  laying  herself  on  her  couch, 
she  fell  into  a  sweet  sleep,  and  she  dreamed 
that  she  was  walking  in  a  garden  of  fruit 
trees,  and  that  it  was  the  joyous  spring- 
time of  the  year;  and  though  there  were 
various  kinds  of  trees  in  the  garden,  such 
as  the  apple,  the  pear,  the  peach,  and  the 
plum,  also  many  kinds  which  Lilla's  waking 
eye  had  never  seen,  yet  they  were  all  in 
full  bloom.  The  peach  trees  bore  pink 
blossoms ;  the  plum,  cherry,  and  pear  trees, 
white  ;  and  so  full  of  blossoms  were  the 
trees,  that  she  could  scarcely  see  any  green 
leaves.     The  ground  beneath  the  trees  was 


lilla's  dream.      •  49 

covered  with  flowers  of  almost  every  hue ; 
and  the  blossoms  looked  so  glad,  that  Lilla 
wondered  they  did  not  sing  out  for  joy,  as 
the  birds  and  insects  did. 

That  moment,  a  honey-bee  that  was  buz- 
zing near  a  rose-bush,  whispered  in  her  ear, 
and  said,  "  They  do  sing ;  they  are  at  this 
moment  singing  a  joyous  song  in  concert, 
but  your  senses  are  too  gross  to  perceive 
it ;  I  can  hear  it,  and  I  can  understand  all 
their  words." 

"  Oh ! "  cried  Lilla,  "  I  wish  I  were  a 
honey-bee,  that  I  too  might  hear  it! "  and 
she  stood  still,  and  listened  very  intently, 
scarcely  daring  to  breathe.  Soon  she 
thought  her  hearing  had  grown  more  clear, 
and  she  could  distinctly  perceive  a  sound, 
like  the  far-off  tinkling  of  little  bells,  and 
5 


50  lilla's  dream. 

her  heart  leaped  for  joy.  Breathless,  she 
continued  to  listen,  till  at  length  she  could 
even  distinguish  the  words,  and  their  song 
was  that  of  gladness  and  gratitude  for  their 
existence.  Lilla  listened  a  long  time  in 
delight,  and  then  she  went  and  sat  down  on 
a  little  green  mound  to  rest.  While  she 
sat  there,  a  frog  came  hopping  up  the 
bank  ;  Lilla  was  about  to  frighten  him 
away,  but  he  looked  up  into  her  face  with 
an  expression  of  so  much  kindness,  that 
she  thought  it  seemed  to  say,  "  come  near, 
little  maid,  let  us  be  friends ; "  and  he 
smiled  roughly  with  his  great  mouth ;  and 
she  said,  "  Speckled-sides,  why  do  you  not 
sing  like  the  birds  ?  you  have  a  mouth  big 
enough ;  and  even  the  blossoms  on  the 
trees  are  singing  this  bright  spring  morn- 


lilla's  dream.  51 

ing,  and  yet  you  are  silent ;  what  right 
have  you  to  take  up  your  abode  in  this 
place,   so   full   of  melody,   if  you   cannot 


sing  ? " 

"  Indeed  !  "  exclaimed  Speckled-sides, 
tossing  up  his  head,  and  looking  mighty 
proud,  "do  but  follow  me  to  the  nearest 
brook,  where  my  companions  are  holding  a 
concert,  and  you  will  soon  see ; "  'and  he 
turned  from  her,  and  hopped  down  the 
bank  as  fast  as  he  could  go. 

Lilla  followed  him  into  a  deep  meadow, 
through  which  ran  the  pretty  streamlet. 
The  ground  all  round  the  brook  was  blue 
with  violets,  and  they  sang  the  same  song 
as  did  the  blossoms  in  the  garden.  This 
meadow  was  a  sunny  place  ;  there  were 
trees  to  shelter  it  from  the  wind  on  every 


52 


side,  but  so  far  off,  that  their  shadows  did 
not  reach  the  spot  where  Lilla  stood,  and 
the  warm  sun-beams  felt  pleasantly  as  they 
fell  upon  her  neck.  Speckled-sides  leaped 
into  the  brook,  and,  sitting  up  as  straight 
as  he  could,  so  that  his  head  might  be  seen 
out  of  the  water,  joined  his  loud  voice  with 
those  of  the  other  frogs.  Lilla  perceived 
that  the  song  of  the  frogs  did  not  glide 
from  their  mouths  in  graceful  undulations, 
like  those  of  the  birds,  but  that  it  was 
monotonous  and  discordant,  yet  did  it  de- 
light her  soul.  It  seemed  like  the  warmth 
of  the  sun-beams ;  it  gave  her  the  idea  of 
newly  awakened  life,  and  warmth,  and  joy. 
"  It  is  the  song,"  said  she,  "  which  al- 
ways brings  to  inind  the  thoughts  of  spring, 
that  season  of  returning  life  and  gladness  ; 


53 


I  love  to  listen  to  it,  for  there  is  music  even 
in  its  monotony  ; "  and  she  laid  herself 
down  upon  the  bed  of  blue  violets  by  the 
side  of  the  brook,  as  she  had  done  in  the 
morning ;  and  as  she  lay  there,  she  saw 
nothing  but  the  blue  sky ;  she  heard  the 
voices  of  birds  around  and  above  her,  but 
she  saw  them  not ;  and  it  seemed  as  if  the 
sky  came  down  nearer  and  nearer  to  her, 
or  that  she  was  lifted  up  towards  it,  and 
the  voices  of  the  birds  seemed  like  the 
voices  of  invisible  spirits,  singing  around 
her.  She  saw  nothing  but  beauty ;  she 
heard  nothing  but  song ;  she  felt  nothing 
but  the  pleasant  warmth  of  the  sunbeams ; 
and  her  little  heart  was  full  of  joy  and 
love.  She  turned  her  face  toward  the 
brook  which  flowed  through  the  meadow  in 


54  lilla's  dream. 

various  windings,  leaping  over  bright  peb- 
bles, which  sparkled  in  the  sunlight  like 
gems. 

"  Little  brook,"  said  she,  "  whither  art 
thou  going  ?  Perhaps  thou  canst  not  tell 
thyself,  beautiful  brook! " 

"I  am  free!  I  am  free!"  cried  the 
brook ;  "  and  I  know  not,  neither  do  I 
care,  whither  I  go.  I  have  been  chained 
up  all  winter,  with  a  cold,  cold  chain ;  and 
now  that  I  am  free,  I  will  run  without 
stopping,  till  Jack  Frost  binds  me  again." 

"  Then,"  said  Lilla,  "  I  will  Mow  and 
see ; "  and  she  ran  along  by  the  side  of  the 
brook,  which  led  her  through  many  flowery 
meadows,  and  at  length  into  a  deep  dell. 
When  Lilla  had  followed  it  down  the  steep, 
and  stood  at  the  bottom  of  the  dell,  her 


55 


little  soul  was  full  of  wonder ;  and  clasping 
her  hands  in  a  transport  of  delight,  she 
exclaimed,  "  this  must  be  heaven  or  some 
fairy  land."  The  ground  and  all  the  rocks 
were  covered  with  moss  of  the  most  bril- 
liant green,  and  it  felt  as  soft  to  her  little 
feet  as  a  velvet  cushion ;  and  the  sun, 
which  was  shining  over  her  head  through 
the  foliage,  was  luminous  —  jet  it  was  not 
like  daylight,  nor  was  it  like  moonlight ;  it 
shone  with  a  green  brilliancy,  so  that  every- 
thing in  the  dell  gleamed  like  liquid  eme- 
ralds. There  were  many  beautiful  flowers 
growing  up  out  of  the  green  moss,  and 
beautiful  birds  singing  among  the  trees ; 
the  squirrels  and  the  green  lizards  ran 
along  the  branches.  Down  at  the  very 
bottom  of  the  dell,  there  was  a  large  flat 


56  lilla' s  dream. 

rock  covered  with  red  cup  moss  ;  some  of 
these  fairy  goblets  were  standing  half  full 
of  dew,  and  others  were  thrown  over  on 
their  sides,  and  some  of  them  were  broken ; 
there  were  also  berries  and  broken  nuts 
scattered  about  the  rock.  Presently  a 
squirrel  jumped  up  and  began  to  gather 
them ;  then  Lilla  approached,  and  took  one 
of  the  goblets ;  the  squirrel  looked  up  into 
her  face,  and  smilingly  said,  "  Good  morn- 
ing." He  then  took  a  goblet,  and  asked 
politely  if  she  would  drink  some  dew  with 
him ;  and  they  drank  off  their  cups  together. 

"  Pray  tell  me,  Nut-cracker,"  said  Lilla, 
"  what  company  has  been  feasting  here  on 
this  rock ;  these  broken  goblets  seem  to  tell 
of  high  glee  and  festivity." 

"  Why,   the   fairies,   the   fairies,   to   be 


5T 

sure ;  dost  thou  not  know  the  fairy  goblets  ? 
This  dell  belongs  to  king  Oberon  and  queen 
Titania,  and  joyous  indeed  are  the  revels 
they  hold  here." 

"  I  should  like  to  see  one  of  the  fairies," 
said  Lilla. 

"  Come  with  me,"  said  Nut-cracker, 
"  and  I  will  show  you  one." 

So  he  went  leaping  along  over  the  green 
moss,  and  as  Lilla  ran  after,  it  seemed  to 
her  that  she  was  flying,  so  fast  did  she  have 
to  run  that  she  might  keep  pace  with  him. 
He  led  her  into  an  open  part  of  the  dell, 
where  the  trees  were  not  so  thick,  and 
where  the  ground  was  entirely  covered  with 
flowers  of  almost  every  hue. 

"  There  is  Dew-drop,  a  very  pretty  fai- 
ry," said  Nut-cracker,  pointing  to  a  sylph- 
like figure  in  the  midst  of  the  flowers. 


58 


"  Let  us  go,"  said  Lilla,  "  and  see  what 
she  is  doing." 

So  they  went  to  the  fairy,  and  they  said, 
"  What  dost  thou  with  the  flowers,  pretty 
being  ?  thou  dost  not  seem  to  be  plucking 
them." 

"Do  you  see  the  beautiful  figures  on 
these  flowers  ?  "  asked  the  fairy. 

"  Oh  !  yes,"  replied  Lilla. 

"Well,"  said  the  fairy,  "they  have  a 
meaning  which,  perhaps,  you  have  not 
dreamed  of;  these  pencilings  are  musical 
notes,  and  ive  alone  can  understand  them 
—  and  we  sing  our  songs  from  them. 
There  are  about  the  flowers  great  myster- 
ies ;  on  some  of  them  are  beautiful  stories, 
and  the  songs  which  we  sing  are  here 
written  —  and   when   we   learn   them,   we 


59 


write  them  on  the  brain  of  some  sleeping 
mortal  whose  soul  delights  in  melodies  ; 
when  he  awakes  he  gives  them  forth  to  the 
world.  The  stories  we  write  on  the  brain, 
as  we  said,  but  the  mysteries  we  keep  to 
ourselves." 

"  Oh !  "  said  Lilla,  "  make  me  to  under- 
stand the  notes,  that  I  may  sing  more 
sweetly  than  the  birds." 

Then  the  fairy  taught  her  one  of  the 
songs,  and  it  seemed  in  her  dream  as  if  she 
lifted  up  her  voice  and  sang.  Louder  and 
louder  it  grew,  till  she  seemed  to  fill  the 
whole  air  with  her  music. 

Then  Dew-drop  asked  Lilla  if  she  would 
like  to  go  and  amuse  herself  in  the  Elfin's 
Cave ;  and  as  she  did  not  know  what  sort 
of  a  place  this  was,  she  was  curious  to  see 


60 

it,  and  requested  Dew-drop  to  guide  her 
thither.  Now  Dew-drop  called  two  of  her 
torch-bearers,  the  fire-flies,  to  light  them 
through  the  dark  cave. 

They  went  on  together,  and  when  they 
had  entered  the  cave,  Dew-drop  said  — 
"  Now  we  will  amuse  ourselves.  Thou  seest 
how  rocky  are  the  sides  of  the  cave.  This 
rock  is  soft  and  flaky,  like  slate-stone,  and 
is  very  easily  split  apart ;  let  us  open  some 
of  it,  and  see  what  we  can  find  between 
the  flakes."  And  by  the  fight  of  the  fire- 
flies they  began  to  split  the  flaky  rock,  and 
to  the  great  surprise  of  Lilla,  they  found 
between  the  flakes  beautiful  pictures  of 
every  description.  She  also  found  musical 
notes,  which  they  sang,  and  the  hollow  cave 
echoed  to  their  voices.     After  Lilla  had 


61 


looked  at  everything  she  could  find,  they 
left  the  cave ;  and  Dew-drop,  bidding  her 
good  morning,  returned  to  the  flowers. 

"  Lilla ! "  cried  a  little  voice  from  the 
branches  of  an  apple-tree,  under  which  she 
stood. 

She  looked  up,  and  espied  the  smiling 
face  of  Nut-cracker,  looking  down  upon  her 
through  the  foliage ;  he  was  sitting  on  a 
bough  of  the  tree,  holding  in  his  little  paws 
an  apple,  from  which  he  was  picking  out 
the  seeds  and  eating  them.  He  threw 
down  one  of  the  apples  to  Lilla,  who,  at 
Nut-cracker's  request,  began  to  save  her 
seeds.  While  she  was  picking  them  out, 
she  said  to  them : 

"  Poor  prisoners !  what  a  miserable  life 
you  must  lead,  shut  up  in  the  very  centre 
of  this  dark  apple." 


62  lilla's  dream. 

"  No  matter,"  answered  they,  "  we  are 
content  ;  we  do  not  live  for  ourselves ; 
yesterday  was  for  the  sake  of  to-day,  and 
to-day  for  the  sake  of  to-morrow ;  and  we 
are  formed  for  the  sake  of  the  tree  which 
now  lies  in  embryo  within  us.  Unlike 
selfish  human  beings,  all  we  desire  is,  that 
the  end  of  our  existence  may  be  answered." 

Lilla  walked  away,  and  seeing  an  apple- 
tree  in  full  blossom,  she  said,  —  "  This  tree 
and  its  fair  blossoms  live  for  themselves,  no 
doubt." 

" Nay,"  answered  the  tree,  "I  draw 
nourishment  from  the  earth,  and  spread  out 
my  leaves  that  they  may  receive  heat  and 
life  from  the  sun ;  the  showers  of  rain  are 
for  the  sake  of  the  fruit  we  bear ;  we  clothe 
ourselves  in  blossoms,  because  they  are  the 
means  of  producing  seed." 


LILLA  S   DREAM.  b'6 

"  Yes,"  said  the  blossoms,  "  we  are  con- 
tent to  wither  and  drop  off  as  soon  as  our 
task  is  done ;  for  it  is  for  the  sake  of  the 
fruit  that  we  exist,  and  our  fruit  fur  the 
sake  of  man ;  so,  when  our  fruit  is  eaten, 
the  seeds  are  free  to  mix  themselves  in  the 
mould,  in  order  to  send  forth  another  tree." 

Lilla  left  the  tree,  and  presently  came  to 
a  part  of  the  dell  where  the  flowery  vines 
were  climbing  up  and  stretching  themselves 
from  limb  to  limb,  forming  a  soft  hammock, 
or  cradle  ;  and,  climbing  up  one  of  the 
trees,  she  leaped  into  the  flowery  hammock, 
and  the  wind  came  and  rocked  her  to  and 
fro  so  high  that  she  was  thrown  out  of  it, 
and  the  sudden  fright  awoke  her.  She 
opened  her  eyes,  and  found  her  sister  was 
shaking  her,*  instead  of  the  wind. 


THE    CHILD'S    DREAM 
AMONG  FLOWERS. 

BY   MISS    COLMAN. 

Raving  sweetly  o'er  thy  head, 
I       Flowers  softly  sigh ; 

Watching  o'er  thy  grassy  bed, 
Singing  lullaby. 

"  Gently  murmuring  in  thine  ear, 
Angels  from  on  high, 
Resting  in  these  lovely  flowers, 
Sing  thee  lullaby. 


65 


"Bending  o'er  thee,  darling  child. 
Kissing  thy  blue  eye, 
Singing  softly  to  thy  soul, 
Sweetest  lullaby." 

Thus  sang  the  flowers  to  the  child,  as  lie 
slept  beneath  their  waving  bells ;  and  he 
heard  them,  and  listened  to  the  lullaby  of 
the  angels.  The  flowers  watched  him  as 
he  listened,  and  saw  how  beautiful  smiles 
played  over  his  face,  and  then,  how  tear- 
drops chased  each  other  down  his  fair 
cheek,  and  how  he  again  smiled  peacefully ; 
and  they  grew  curious,  wishing  to  know 
why  the  child  smiled  and  wept  by  turns. 
And  they  sang  to  him  again :  — 

6 


66 


"  Child,  among  us  lying, 
And  so  softly  sleeping, 
Time  is  swiftly  flying, 

Waken  from  thy  dreaming. 

"While  thy  mouth  is  smiling, 
And  thy  blue  eyes  beaming, 
While  the  sun  is  shining, 
Tell  us  of  thy  dreaming." 

Then  the  child  awakened;  and  he  told 
the  flowers  how  angels  sat  each  side  of 
him,  and  sang  to  him  of  his  mother  and 
sisters,  who  lived  in  heaven,  and  how  happy 
they  were  ;  and  how  beautiful  heaven  was, 
and  how  he  might  go  there  and  live ;  this 
made  him  feel  very  happy.  But  then  the 
angels  told  him,  with  sweet,  sad  voices, 
how  naughty  he  was,  and  how  much  he 


the  child's  dream.  67 

must  do  to  be  good  enough  to  live  in 
heaven ;  and  his  heart  sank,  and  he  feared 
that  he  never  should  see  his  dear  mother 
again.  Then  he  wept;  —  but  soon  he  felt 
on  his  brow  other  tears,  and  he  looked  up, 
and  saw  the  angels  weeping.  Then  they 
sang  to  him  again :  — 

"  Weep  not,  weep  not,  darling  child, 
We  are  ever  near  thee, 
And,  'mid  all  the  ills  around, 
We  will  guard  and  help  thee. 

"  And  when  thou  art  very  good, 
In  our  arms  we  '11  take  thee, 
And,  while  singing  thankful  songs, 
Up  to  heaven  we'll  bear  thee." 
% 
Then  the  angels  told  him  how  he  must 
watch  the  flowers,  and  listen  to  the  birds, 


68  the  child's  dream. 

—  and  they  would  teach  him  to  be  good; 
but  that  he  must  pray  often  and  heartily, 
or  else  they  could  not  stay  with  him. 
Then  they  sang  once  more  about  heaven  — 
and  how  he  would  go  there  too ;  and  they 
kissed  him  on  the  forehead,  softly  and 
gently,  like  the  touch  of  a  flower.  Then 
the  flowers  awoke  him,  —  and  now  he  had 
told  them  what  he  had  been  dreaming. 

And  the  flowers  wept  too  at  the  lovely 
dream  of  the  beautiful  child ;  and  they 
touched  him  with  their  bells  as  the  angels 
kissed  him,  and  showered  upon  him  dew- 
drops,  till  his  golden  hair  sparkled  with 
the  liquid  diamonds.  Then  the  child  felt 
strong  and  hopeful;  —  and  kneeling  down 
among  the  flowers,  he  prayed  that  he  might 
be  good  and  pure,  so  that  the  angels  would 
take  him  soon  to  his  mother. 


CHILDHOOD. 


My  heart  leaps  up  when  I  behold 

A  rainbow  in  the  sky ; 
So  was  it  when  my  life  began, 
So  is  it  now  I  am  a  man, 

So  let  it  be  when  I  grow  old, 

Or  let  me  die.  Wordsworth. 


he  angel  that  takes  care  of  the  ten- 
der lambs  and  sprinkles  dew  upon 
the  flowers  in  the  still  night,  take 
care  of  thee,  dear  child,  and  let  no  evil  come 
to  thy  tender  years.  Fair  child !  when  I 
gaze  into  thy  soft  blue  eyes  my  childhood  re- 
turns, like  a  bright  vision,  and  I  think  of  the 
time,  long  since  past,  when  every  sight  and 


72  CHILDHOOD. 

every  sound  in  nature  gave  to  me  such 
sweet  delight,  and  all  was  so  fair  and  beauti- 
ful. I  fancy  I  hear  thy  gentle  voice  breath- 
ing forth  thy  joy,  in  sweet  and  happy  words, 
such  as  little  children  are  wont  to  use  when 
they  first  begin  to  look  up  into  the  blue 
sky,  to  gaze  upon  the  rainbow,  or  at  the 
bright,  fleecy  clouds  that  float  over  the 
moon.  The  bright  sun,  the  moon,  and  the 
stars  —  the  murmuring  rivulet  —  the  broad 
ocean,  heaving  to  and  fro  in  the  sunlight  — 
the  pealing  thunder,  and  the  storm  —  the 
quiet  glen,  where  I  listened  to  the  busy 
hum  of  the  insects,  the  joyous  song  of  the 
birds,  as  they  sung  in  the  trees  or  flew  from 
spray  to  spray,  the  odor  of  fresh  flowers 
—  all  filled  my  breast  with  heavenly  love 
and  peace ;  and  when  I  look  up  into  thy 


CHILDHOOD.  73 

face,  dear  child,  my  soul  returns  to  join 
you,  and  I  forget  the  present,  and  live,  for 
a  time,  only  in  the  past. 

The  little  maid  you  see  gazing  at  the 
great  dragon-fly,  is  the  foster  child  of  a  good 
shepherd ;  she  has  risen  with  the  morning 
sun,  and  has  come  forth  into  the  silent 
wood,  to  lift  up  her  little  voice,  with  the 
birds,  in  songs  of  praise  and  thanksgiving 
to  the  Creator,  and  to  ask  His  blessing  on 
all  that  lives.  The  little  lamb  by  her  side 
is  the  companion  of  all  her  walks  ;  she 
gives  it  fresh  grass  to  eat,  with  her  own 
hand,  and  water  from  the  clear  stream  that 
flows  rippling  beneath  the  green  trees. 
She  makes  garlands  of  the  choicest  flowers, 
and  hangs  them  upon  his  neck.  She  loves 
the  flowers,  the  green  grass,  and  the  rip- 


74  CHILDHOOD. 

pling  stream.  She  loves  to  walk  with  her 
lamb  in  the  still  woods,  and  listen  to  the 
hum  of  the  little  insects  that  dwell  there. 
She  is  Nature's  happy  child,  and  her  dis- 
courses are  with  its  wonders.  It  is  in  the 
quiet  dell,  by  the  softly  murmuring  stream, 
that  she  loves  most  to  stay ;  she  is  talking 
now  with  that  large  dragon-fly ;  and  if  a 
picture  could  speak,  we  should  hear  her  say, 
in  the  gentlest  accents  in  the  world : 

"  Come  here,  pretty  dragon-fly,  come 
and  rest  on  my  hand,  and  let  me  feel  of 
your  gossamer  wings,  and  look  into  your 
bright  eyes ;  come,  listen  to  me,  and  I  will 
tell  you  a  tale  —  I  will  —  " 

But  the  dragon-fly  hears  her  not  —  he  is 
looking  at  a  beautiful  lily,  in  whose  soft 
cup  he  intends  to  rest  awhile  —  oh !  how 


75 


beautiful  it  is  !  and  the  dragon-fly  has  lit 
upon  it  —  the  little  maid  claps  her  hands 
for  joy,  for  she  is  sure  of  him  now ;  and 
she  stretches  out  her  hand  to  the  lily  cup ; 
but  ere  she  could  touch-  it,  the  pretty  crea- 
ture has  flown  from  the  flower,  and  as  it 
pauses  in  the  air,  we  can  imagine  that  it 
says: 

"  Good-by,  little  girl,  I  shall  not  suffer 
myself  to  be  caught  to-day ; "  and  off  he 
flies,  soaring  higher  and  higher  into  the 
blue  heavens. 

MRS.   COLMAN. 


THE   KING   OF   THE   SWANS 

OR  DELPHINE  THE   GOOD. 


FROM   THE   GERMAN. 


JMglfiiERE  was  once  a  little  girl,  who  was 
311%;  can^  Delphine,  so  good  and  cheer- 
$£fcs  ful,  that  she  was  a  favorite  with 
everybody.  This  good  girl  had  a  friend 
called  Hilda,  who  was  also  a  good  girl,  and 
they  loved  each  other  dearly. 

In  the  winter,  when  the  snow  was  lying 
deep  upon  hill  and  field,  Hilda  fell  sick,  and 
her  parents  were  in  great  anxiety  on  her 
account.  She  was  quite  unable  to  eat  — 
was  burning  with  fever  heat,  and  shivering 


THE    KING    OF    THE    SWANS;  <7 

with  cold,  by  turns,  —  and  though  she  was 
tenderly  nursed,  could  get  no  relief. 

If  any  of  her  young  friends  visited  her, 
she  would  say  to  them,  "  Give  me  straiv- 
lerries,  who  will  go  and  find  me  some 
strawberries,  that  I  may  get  well  and  not 
die  ?  "  Then  her  father  and  mother  would 
say,  "  Dear  Hilda,  it  is  winter  now,  and 
there  are  none  to  be  'found  this  season." 

Hilda  would  then  raise  herself  up  in  bed, 
and  say,  "  Far  away  over  the  high  hill 
there,  and  through  the  forest,  is  a  green 
slope  ;  there  I  can  see  plenty  of  straw- 
berries. 

"  Who  will  go  and  fetch  them  for  me  — 
only  one  of  those  nice  red  berries  —  only 
one  !  "  The  children  left  the  room,  saying, 
to  each  other,  "  What  nonsense  poor  Hilda 


78  THE   KING   OF   THE   SWANS. 

talked  about ;  she  must  be  dreaming." 
But  Delphine  was  mucb  troubled  that  she 
could  not  help  her  friend.  All  at  once  she 
said,  "  Who  will  go  with  me  over  the  moun- 
tains to  seek  for  strawberries  ?  It  will  be 
some  comfort  to  poor  Hilda  if  she  sees 
us  going  over  the  hill  to  seek  for  them." 
But  no  one  would  go  with  her. 

So  Delphine  set  out  alone,  for  she 
wished  to  do  all  she  could  to  help  her 
friend,  though  she  had  to  go  through  a 
deep  and  dangerous  forest.  After  she  left 
the  forest,  she  came  to  the  hill.  A  small 
trodden  foot-path  led  up  to  the  top  and 
down  again  on  the  other  side  ;  she  then 
came  to  a  wood  of  *tall  oak  and  beach 
trees.  She  passed  through  without  having 
met  a  single  adventure ;  she  then  came  to 


iflE   KIXG    OF   THE    SWAXS.  79 

a  place  where  tliree  paths  met.  She  stood 
still  a  moment,  not  knowing  which  to  take, 
when,  quite  unexpectedly,  she  saw  a  little 
man  approaching  through  the  trees.  He 
had  a  green  hat  upon  his  head,  with  a 
feather  as  white  as  snow.  His  dress  was 
made  of  the  softest  swan's  down.  He  car- 
ried an  ivory  bow  on  his  shoulder,  and  a 
small  silver  hunting  horn  hung  at  his  side. 
"  What  do  you  want  here,  little  damsel  ?  " 
he  said,  in  a  friendly  voice. 

"  Ah  !  "  said  Delphine,  "  I  have  a  sick 
friend,  who  longs  for  strawberries,  and  says 
they  will  make  her  well  again.  I  know 
.very  well  that  it  is  winter,  but  I  hope  to 
find  something  here  that  she  will  like,  and 
I  hope  that  I  shall  not  return  quite  empty- 
handed." 


80  THE   KING   OE   THE   SWANS. 

"  Come  with  me  then,"  said  the  little 
hunter.  "  I  will  show  you  a  place  where 
you  may  find  what  you  are  in  search  of." 
He  went  on  before,  leading  her  through 
many  winding  paths,  until  the  forest  ap- 
peared lighter,  the  air  warmer  and  more 
spring-like.  At  last  they  came  to  a  great 
iron  door.  The  little  man  unlocked  it, 
saying,  "  Now,  if  you  go  straight  forward, 
you  will  find  what  you  seek." 

Delphine  would  have  thanked  the  good 
man,  but  he  vanished  instantly.  After 
walking  a  few  steps  farther,  she  came  to  a 
green  slope. 

Here  winter  had  entirely  disappeared. 
The  sun  shone  warmer  in  the  cloudless 
sky ;  the  birds  sang  merrily,  and  a  few 
steps  farther  she  beheld  the  ground  covered 


THE   KING   OF   THE   SWANS.  81 

with  fine  strawberries.  How  the  good  lit- 
tie  maiden  rejoiced !  she  quickly  filled  the 
little  basket  she  brought  with  her,  and 
hastened  back  with  them  to  her  dear  sick 
friend.  But  some  how  in  her  haste  she 
could  not  find  her  way  back.  She  came  to 
the  iron  palisades  which  surrounded  the 
place,  but  all  her  attempts  to  find  the  gate 
were  fruitless.  In  her  anxiety,  she  ran 
this  way  and  that ;  still  no  gate  was  to  be 
seen.  Then  she  heard  the  sound  of  a 
whistle,  and  she  exclaimed,  with  joy,  "I 
hear  a  living  sound,  some  one,  surely,  is  in 
this  wood  who  will  be  kind  enough  to  show 
me  the  way  out." 

She  hastily  traversed  the  thicket  in  an- 
other direction,  and  suddenly  beheld  a 
scene   which    caused    her   great    surprise. 


82  THE   KING    OF   THE   SWANS. 

Before  her  laid  a  large,  green  meadow,  and 
beyond  this  a  clear  lake,  on  which  a  num- 
ber of  stately  and  beautiful  swans  were 
swimming  very  gracefully.  In  the  middle 
of  the  lake  was  a  small  island,  upon  which 
stood  a  charming  palace,  surrounded  by 
flower  gardens  and  orange  groves.  As  she 
drew  near  the  shore  of  the  lake,  she  per- 
ceived a  little  man,  who  had  a  less  friendly 
aspect  than  the  hunter  of  the  forest.  He 
had  a  large  head,  with  rough  hair,  and  a 
grey  beard,  so  long  that  it  reached  to  his 
knees ;  in  one  hand  he  held  a  whistle,  and 
in  the  other  a  switch. 

Delphine  was  afraid  to  speak  to  him,  and 
stood  still,  at  a  little  distance.  She  soon 
observed  that  his  office  was  to  take  care  of 
the  swans,  and  prevent  their  going  out  of 


THE  KING  OP  THE   SWANS.  83 

the  water.  When  any  did  so,  he  whistled 
to  them,  and  if  they  did  not  obey  him, 
he  stretched  out  his  switch,  which  had 
the  remarkable  property  of  lengthening  or 
shortening — just  as  he  wished  to  have  it. 
Delphine  could  see  no  one  save  this  little 
old  man,  nor  any  mode  of  reaching  the 
palace ;  therefore  she  gained  courage  to 
say,  "  Good  friend,  can  you  show  me  how 
to  get  out  of  the  forest  ?  I  wish  to  go 
home."  The  grey-beard  looked  at  her  in 
surprise,  but  did  not  speak ;  he  merely 
made  her  understand,  by  signs,  that  she 
should  sit  down,  which  she  did. 

Then  he  whistled,  and  presently  there 
came  a  large  swan  from  the  lake,  which 
laid  itself  down  before  him.  The  little  old 
man  seated  himself  on  the  swan's  back, 


84  THE   KING   OE   THE   SWANS. 

throwing  one  of  his  arms  round  its  neck, 
and  away  the  trusty  bird  swam  with  him 
across  the  lake ;  there  he  alighted,  and 
went  into  the  palace.  Delphine  waited 
some  time,  curious  to  see  what  would  hap- 
pen, but  she  did  not  feel  afraid.  At  length 
she  saw  four  black  swans  swim  from  a 
creek  of  the  lake,  harnessed  to  a  beautiful 
little  green  boat,  adorned  with  silver,  and 
shaded  by  a  pair  of  wings,  which  covered 
the  seats ;  the  front  was  in  shape  like  a 
swan's  neck. 

The  grey-beard  sat  there,  looking  much 
more  agreeable  than  before.  He  gave 
Delphine  a  sign  to  step  in,  which  she  did ; 
they  then  sailed  gently  across  the  lake,  and 
as  soon  as  they  reached  the  other  side,  he 
handed  her  out  and  led  her  to  the  palace.' 


THE   KING   OF   THE   SWANS.  85 

In  the  hall,  sat  the  King  of  the  Swans. 
He  wore  a  robe  of  the  purest  white  silk, 
bordered  with  swan's  down ;  a  golden  crown 
was  upon  his  head,  and  he  was  surrounded 
by  richly  dressed  attendants. 

"  What  dost  thou  seek  in  my  kingdom  ?  " 
inquired  he. 

"  I  have  found  all  I  sought,"  answered 
Delphine  ;  "  but  I  pray  your  majesty  to  let 
some  one  of  your  attendants  direct  me 
home,  for  I  find  I  have  wandered  in  the 
wrong  direction." 

"  Very  well,"  said  the  King,  "what  hast 
thou  to  offer?" 

"  Alas  !  "  replied  Delphine,  "  I  have 
nothing  at  all.  If  I  had  known  what  you 
would  have  wished  of  me,  I  should  have 
brought  it  with  me  from  home." 


86  THE   KING   OF   THE   SWANS. 

"Thou  hast  strawberries,"  rejoined  the 
King,  "  and  I  like  them  above  all  things. 
Give  me  thj  strawberries,  and  then  one  of 
my  servants  shall  show  thee  the  way  home." 

"  Alas !  I  camiot  give  thee  all,"  con- 
tinued Delphme  ;  "  they  are  for  my  sick 
friend,  who  must  die  if  she  does  not  get 
them ;  but  I  will  willingly  give  you  some  of 
them." 

She  then  took  several  of  the  finest  look- 
ing ones,  and  tied  them  by  the  stems  with 
a  riband  that  confined  her  hair,  and  handed 
them  to  the  King. 

"Thank  my  little  daughter,"  said  the 
King.  "Now  go  thy  way,  and  this  man 
shall  attend  thee ;  but  do  exactly  as  he 
desires." 

The  old  man  with  the  grey  beard  wait- 


THE   KING   OF   THE   SWANS.  87 

ed  in  readiness  for  her,  and  when  Delphine 
had  taken  leave  of  the  King,  he  led  her 
into  the  garden,  tied  a  handkerchief  about 
her  eyes,  whistled,  and  at  the  same  instant 
took  her  by  the  arm. 

She  heard  the  rustling  of  wings,  she  felt 
the  wind  blow  colder  and  colder,  in  her 
face,  but  was  not  conscious  of  moving,  nor 
could  she  see  anything. 

At  last  the  sound  of  wings  ceased,  and 
the  old  man  set  her  upon  the  ground. 
"  Now,  my  child,  count  twenty,  and  then 
remove  the  bandage  and  preserve  it  care- 
fully; it  will,  be  required  of  thee  at  the 
proper  time." 

As  soon  as  the  bandage  was  removed, 
she  found  herself  standing  on  the  hill, 
opposite   the  house  of  her  friend,  Hilda. 


88  THE   KING   OF   THE   SWANS. 

Then  she  hastened  to  her  friend,  who  was 
still  in  bed  repeating  the  words,  "  Who  will 
bring  me  straivberries  to  make  me  well  ?  " 

"  There  they  are,  dear  Hilda,"  said  Del- 
phine,  handing  her  a  bright  red  bunch. 
Every  one  was  astonished,  and  anxious  to 
know  from  whence  she  had  brought  them. 
But  she  had  barely  begun  to  relate  her 
wonderful  adventures,  before  Hilda  had 
eaten  all  the  strawberries.  Then  the  color 
returned  to  her  face,  and  strength  to  her 
limbs  ;  and  Hilda  said,  "  Thank  the  Lord, 
and  dear  Delphine,  now  I  am  quite  well !  " 
And  she  rose  from  her  bed,  quite  restored. 

Who  can  tell  how  the  parents  thanked 
and  blessed  Delphine  —  the  good,  kind- 
hearted  Delphine,  whom  every  one  praised 
and  blessed  —  for  her  self-sacrificing  benev- 
olence and  love  ? 


THE   KING   OF   THE    SWANS.  89 

One  day,  when  Delphine  was  walking  in 
the  meadows  with  her  mother,  some  years 
after  this,  and  was  looking  up  into  the  sky, 
she  saw  a  black  speck,  which,  as  it  de- 
scended, grew  larger  and  larger;  and  as 
it  came  towards  her,  she  saw  that  it  was  a 
prodigious  black  swan.  It  had  on  its  back 
a  tent,  with  golden  gauze  curtains,  and 
when  it  alighted  upon  the  ground  where 
Delphine  was  standing,  there  came  out  of 
the  tent  a  little  man,  with  friendly  eyes, 
who  thus  addressed  her,  "I  am  the  King 
of  the  Swans.  I  have  heard  that  you  will, 
in  a  short  time,  celebrate  a  joyful  festival ; 
and  as  thou  gavest  me  a  present  when  a 
child,  and  hast  grown  up  so  good,  brave, 
and  pure  a  maiden,  I  will  make  thee  a 
present  in  return."     Saying  these  words, 


90  THE   KING    OF   THE    SWANS. 

he  put  upon  her  head  a  costly  crown.  It 
was  made  of  gold,  garnished  with  straw- 
berry leaves ;  and  between  the  leaves  there 
sparkled  red  rubies,  diamonds,  and  purple 
amethysts ;  round  the  rim  was  a  beautiful 
gold  band. 

Delphine  and  her  mother  could  hardly 
thank  the  King,  for  astonishment.  But  he 
did  not  give  them  time,  for  the  swan  rose 
majestically  in  the  air,  and  soon  became  as 
a  little  black  spot  in  the  midst  of  the  bright 
clouds. 

Many  a  little  boy  and  girl  have  gone 
over  the  hill,  since  that  time,  to  seek  the 
land  of  the  Swans,  in  search  of  strawberries 
in  winter,  but  have  not  found  them ;  per- 
haps it  was  because  they  were  more  selfish, 
and  not  so  good  as  Delphine. 


CORINNE. 

\  |ff  ild  broke  the  morning, 
s$M>     Tue  meadows  looked  gay, 
The  birds  sweetly  caroled 
The  welcome  of  May; 
And  blithely  the  girls  played 

At  ball  on  the  green, 
But  the  sweetest,  the  fairest, 
Was  little  Corinne. 

At  hoop  and  at  rope 

She  was  first  of  the  throng, 
And  sweet  as  the  lark 

Of  the  woodland  her  song; 


92  CORINNE. 

None  who  saw  the  curls  fall 
O'er  her  forehead  so  fair, 

Could  doubt  the  calm  oicture 
Of  innocence  there. 

Dance  gaily  along, 

Ever  joyous  and  free, 
Less  joyous  and  happy, 

Oh!  ne'er  may'st  thou  be; 
Young,  artless,  and  lovely, 

Still  bright  be  the  scene, 
Ever  blessed  with  thy  presence, 

My  pretty  Corinne. 


